Think Julian Edelman might not be the same player after returning from his ACL injury? The Patriots wide receiver would beg to differ.
Edelman spoke to reporters on Tuesday, in likely his final media availability before Week 5 when he returns from a four-game suspension. He addressed the idea that he has an opportunity to be an outlier among players who take more than one season to be the same player when they come back from an ACL injury – if they make it back to the same level at all.
Edelman had a tongue-in-cheek takedown of “most medical people” (h/t Mike Giardi) who use data to argue that it takes until at least the second year after an ACL injury to fully recover.
“Those people like, read books and do science tests,” Edelman quipped. “I’ve experienced it. I’ll take me over them.”
History is not on Edelman’s side when it comes to returning from a PED suspension, and not much better when it comes to ACL injuries. But it’s also a rare circumstance for a player of his type, and there’s also the whole thing about being his own guy and not really comparable to others. So he should still be considered a strong candidate to become the exception to the rule that he expects to be.
Though Edelman acknowledged the “tough week” he’s going through knowing that he’ll need to sit out four games, he kept it light and jovial when asked if he’ll be tuning in to see how the team does.
“I’ll definitely be watching,” Edelman said. “I’ll have my Patriots hat on, probably a soda and popcorn.”
— By Matt Dolloff, 985TheSportsHub.com
Matt Dolloff is a digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Have a news tip, question, or comment for Matt? Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff or email him at matthew.dolloff@bbgi.com.